In Iraq War, Hundreds More Displaced by Islamic State

Fighting between Iraqi forces and militants affiliated with the Islamic State close to Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, has displaced over 2,000 people in the past week.

Balkis, 15, embraces her father, Sheikh Matar, on March 31, 2016, after being separated from him for over a year. Balkis stayed with her mother, younger sister, and two younger brothers in Islamic State controlled territory after her father was forced to flee to the Kurdish north. They were able to come together when recent fighting between Iraqi forces and ISIS created an opportunity for them to escape late the previous night. AP Photo/Cengiz Yar

MAKHMOUR, Iraq—Fighting between Iraqi forces and militants affiliated with the Islamic State (ISIS) close to Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, has displaced over 2,000 people in the past week.

On one recent night, around a hundred people arrived on the outskirts of the town of Makhmour, in Iraq’s semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region, having fled violence.

The journey ended in a long-awaited reunion for some families torn apart by war. Sheikh Matar Kurdi al-Bijari had left his home in the town of al-Zab, south of Mosul, for the city of Kirkuk in 2014 but was forced to leave his wife, daughter and son behind. When they fled to Makhmour in late March, al-Bijari travelled to meet them.

“Today is a very happy day for me because I am finally reunited with my wife and my kids. I hadn’t seen them for a year and a month,” he said, after tearfully hugging his family.

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